Saturday, April 11, 2015

Around Here

Hello everyone,

I spent a lovely Easter with my parents... Hubby was working so I packed some clothes and away I went. It is so nice to spend one on one time with these special people. They are getting older and so far have had fairly good health. They live a simple life with simple needs, are very independent and I love them dearly. There are only two of us children in the family. My elder brother and myself. My brother lives in Queensland and doesn't get to visit us very often, and I know my parents miss him. They live an hour and a half away, west of here.

My dad is a hoarder as you can see by the "junk" in this picture. He had these roosters given to him and wanted to know whether we wanted any to breed from. They were very pretty but as we have our own at the moment, we didn't take any.

I brought this box of apples, bananas and tomatoes home with me.

Mum and Dad are friends with the local IGA grocery store owner and any excess food is given to them to do with what they choose. Sometimes it is too much for just the two of them so I get the benefit too and their chooks get the rest.

There were strawberries too.

I have frozen the bananas and strawberries for using in smoothies.

And some quinces. I will slow cook these to make a Quince Compote which is totally delicous!

Let me introduce you to our newest member of the family. I have been looking after this little girl this week as her mother rejected her. She is only a few days old and just adorable. My daughter is her new mum, and I get to babysit when mum is busy. I will have her here again tomorrow.

She is yet to be named...

She has a bit of a problem with her front legs, but has been checked over by the vet and he thinks that they should come right eventually. Don't you just love her little jumper?

Hubby and I went for a drive today. It is gorgeous weather at the moment, so we decided to head for the hills, visit with friends and go to theLaura Folk Fair for a look. On the way home we came through Port Germein Gorge road. Last year they had a devastating fire go through the area (the Bangor Fire). It burned for a month before heavy rain finally put it out. This is what we saw today. It must have been horrific and hard to imagine a fire inferno raging through these hills.

This is what remains of the Yacka plants on the side of this hill...

It looks so barren now, when usually it is so green.

There are patches of green starting to show through.

We noticed lots of new trees have been planted through the area, but they will take years to grow.

15 comments:

So nice to see an update from you. Sounds like you enjoyed a pleasant visit with your parents.

The photos of the fire area remind me of the time we drove through Wyoming after Yellowstone National Park experienced a devastating fire. Tens of thousands of acres burned for months. That was more than 20 years ago, I'm sure the new growth has restored the natural beauty but I haven't been back since that one and only trip.

Your little goat is adorable. We are expecting our 16 does to kid between mid-April and the 1st of June. We are excited to have all the little new babies. We are also expecting a foal any day now. It is spring time in Montana - our busiest and most exciting season.

Tania, my hubby is a hoarder too and judging by that photo is probably worse than your dad :-) That fire must have been so frightening at the time. Yes, autumn is now my favourite season. Spring used to be but the last couple have been very hot.

I love visiting my Mum but her older ways can be challenging sometimes. Now that i am wiser i can see her frugal ways are probably the way we should all be living but it can be as i say a challenge. We sometimes go for drives and pass through burnt out areas and its makes you so sad. Yet, new life always finds a way.

Tania, great haul from the IGA. I look at marked or less than perfect produce and see endless possibilities too! Cute little bubba goat. Adorable. We in the city have no idea of the challenges you face with natural disasters. I hope everything comes back to life, as it always will. Mimi xxx

Tania I am so aware my parents are getting older. Both still work and run a big farm but Dad is 79 this year. I am trying to visit them more and more. It is easy to forget but time is limited and we need to make the most of it. So I am so glad you can take off and stay with them! Plus you came home with some great stuff!The great thing about chooks is nothing is wasted! it becomes chook food!I love the baby goat. They are so sweet and smart! We had a goat for many years. Very funny! Have a great week this week, I hope some rain comes your way! xxx

Great to spend family time. I persuaded my mother to visit us. I m surprised and delighted she did. Your parents have a gem in that friendly grocer. We hear about the summer fires on the news here in the UK. So devastating.